The present invention relates to a silencer for firearms, comprising a tubular sheath, at one end of which sheath there is attached a fixing collar in order to fix the silencer to the gun barrel and at the other end of which sheath there is attached the muzzle of the silencer which is provided with a hole that is wider than the gun caliber. Inside the sheath of the silencer there is arranged preferably an expansion chamber immediately behind the fixing collar and thereafter a plurality of flange-like elements, which are placed at certain intervals from each other and provided with a hole slightly wider than the gun caliber.
The purpose of the silencer is to diminish noise at the muzzle which is caused by the outcoming powder gas, to prevent flame at the muzzle from being visible when shooting in weak light and to keep the air wave which comes from the gun barrel from moving vegetation and from hurling dust and other materials in front of the shooting location, this is important in military practice in order to conceal the position of the shooter.
Several prior art firearm silencers are known which operate by gas powder, for instance the so-called single-chamber silencers. The single-chamber silencer is formed of a tube attached to the gun muzzle and provided with a tap which has a hole slightly larger than the bullet diameter. In the tubular chamber the powder gases expand and the gas flows obstruct each other while the bullet passes through the muzzle tap. A common type of silencer for rimfire rifles is 25 cm long and has an inner diameter of 30 mm. The gap in the muzzle tap is as small as possible, according to the silencer's location in the weapon.
The silencing effect of the above-discribed silencer is, however, small. The effect can be boosted by placing in the chamber, behind a suitable expansion space reserved for powder gases, a plurality of silencing elements such as various partition plates or spiral-like members which are naturally provided with a hole in the middle, the hole being wider than the gun caliber.
The German Publication DE-AS No. 2 229 071 introduces a silencer for firearms, where, within the cylindrical sheath of the silencer, there is adjusted a tubular member which member has a quadrate cross-section. This member is made up of identical parts attached to each other. The adjacent parts are turned 90.degree. with respect to each other in a plane perpendicular to the silencer axis. Each part is formed of two flap-like plates, which are folded toward each other and towards the silencer axis in order to create a wedge-shaped head against the shooting direction of the bullet. An opening which is larger than the gun caliber is arranged at the wedge-like head of each part. The parts are attached to each other in a partially overlapping fashion for example by welding.
Among the drawbacks of the above-described silencer are that the member located within the silencer sheath has a fixed construction and its singlular parts are large. Thus it is impossible to change the separate parts of the silencer, and the device obtains a relatively large size. Moreover, the parts of the member form such an open system the the powder gases have free entry to the space between the sheath and the member. In that case the flowing speed of the powder gases does not decrease quickly enough, wherefore the silencer does not function effectively.
The drawbacks of the prior art silencers can be summarized in that they are too large and heavy in relation to their efficiency. This hampers their use for example as auxiliary equipment in shooting training. Effective silencers are also complex and therefore expensive. Only few silencers can be dismantled for cleaning and possible changing of separate parts.